Commerce Adviser Sk Bashir Uddin on Wednesday emphasised the need for an action plan to bring the number of thalassemia patients in Bangladesh down to zero within the next 10 years.

He made the remark while addressing a discussion organised marking ‘International Thalassemia Day 2025’ at Bangladesh Shishu Hospital and Institute.

Each thalassemia patient may require up to Tk 20,000 to Tk 30,000 for treatment, he said, noting that the disease imposes the high economic burden.

Even if only one percent of the country’s 10-11 percent thalassemia carriers develop the disease, the national treatment cost could soar to Tk 2,000 to 10,000 crore, he said, calling it an unsustainable burden.

Emphasising the importance of awareness, he said the disease is largely preventable through proper screening and public education.

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To end this disease, he recommended training marriage registrars, engaging religious leaders and school teachers in awareness campaigns and building public consensus on blood screening before marriage.

Being a carrier is not a problem in itself as carriers can lead normal life, he said, adding the danger arises only when two carriers marry.

The adviser inaugurated a thalassemia awareness campaign by undergoing a blood test himself, urging others to do the same.

Chired by Prof Dr. AKM Azizul Haque, chairman of the hospital’s management board, Prof Dr Md Selimuzzaman, former head of the Pediatric Medicine Department; Dr Arefin, general manager of Genfar Bangladesh; and Prof Dr. Md Monir Hossain, academic coordinator, among others, addressed the gathering.

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International Thalassemia Day has been observed globally since 1994 to raise awareness about the disease.

In Bangladesh, treatment began at the then Shishu Hospital (now Bangladesh Shishu Hospital and Institute) in 1998.